Rovers shrug off Dudley Hill with 12 men

Sharlston Rovers .. 32Dudley Hill .. 4

ACE Insurance BARLA National Cup Round 1

Sharlston Rovers continue there unbeaten run in all competitions a head of their Yorkshire Cup final encounter after a 32-4 victory over National Conference Division one outfit Bradford Dudley Hill. The opening twenty minutes passed without any score with Dudley Hill piling on the offensive pressure with hooker Liam Brentley orchestrating the attacks, but Sharlston dug in deep to keep the visitors out. After weathering several attacks Rovers looked to move into driving seat but were dealt a low blow when Craig Miles was dismissed after allegedly talking out of turn to the whistleblower. Despite having only 12 men on the field Rovers pushed on and registered the first try of the game with Jonathan Waddle wrestling over in the corner after a great take from winger Dale Potter, scrum half Matty Bell adding the touchline conversion. Rovers had to pull together in defence after Dudley Hill broke the line, and a stern scramble defence held out the visitors when it looked certain the Conference side would equalise. Building on great yards from prop forwards Danny Burton and James Lockwood, hooker Carl Saville acted quickly from dummy half supplying Keith Brook to force his way over underneath the sticks, Bell again successfully posting extras. Only 2 minutes later fullback Lee Maskill crossed the whitewash after supporting a powerhouse break by captain Steve Hall, Bell again posted the goal. Rovers completed the bountiful five minutes with a score moments before the half time whistle, with Danny Grimshaw feigning to supply 2 dummy runners before applying the gas to score in the corner with Bell converting to give the hosts a well earned 24 points going into the second half.

On the restart Rovers pushed to build onto their first half tally, 10 minutes in Carl Saville punished a short stacked blindside to go over in the corner but Bell couldn’t find the same form with boot as the first half, failing to add the goal from out wide. 6ft plus center Jonathan Waddle completed his brace on the hour mark after backing up Matty Bell who collected a loose ball to race clear before supplying Waddle to beat the last of the defence. Ten minutes before time Dudley Hill registered a consolation try with Willie Woodhead reacting first to a neat chip over the top. 3 minutes before time Rovers were reduced to 11 men when Kevin Dickens was dismissed after an alleged high tackle. Danny Burton sponsored by John Lingard Properties took the man of the match accolade.

Rovers take their unbeaten record to the Chris Moyles stadium Featherstone on the 30th December where they face old rivals Queens in the Halbro Yorkshire Cup Final. The final is sure to be a classic with Queens who edged National Conference Premier outfit Siddal this weekend also take a 100% unbeaten record so something is sure to give in order to lift prestigious cup.